Kamakura (RAH)
:Kamakura is a G.I. Joe character from the G.I. Joe vs. Cobra series. Snake-Eyes realized that he, Jinx and Storm Shadow are all that is left of the Arashikage ninja clan. Although he had set on a path to revive the clan, neither he nor any of the Joes have expected Kamakura to be the apprentice he is looking for. An amazing series of events have brought the two men together and Kamakura is now honored with the task of continuing the clan's traditions. In many ways, Kamakura is the same as his master and in many ways, his opposite too. Like a true ninja, Kamakura likes to blend in the background, unseen and undetected until the moment to strike arrives. He prefers to perform every action in quick, quiet and efficient manner. This same trait, though, is what also sets him apart from his mentor. He tends to be impatient and very excited by events. And while Kamakura has many levels to go before he can reach Snake-Eyes's status, the master knows that every steel can be turned into a finely tuned sword. Fiction Comics A Real American Hero continuity Marvel Comics continuity Sean Broca was the son of Fred Broca, the original Cobra Crimson Guardsman, and later the adopted son of Wade Collins, a comrade of Snake-Eyes, Storm Shadow and Stalker from their days in Vietnam. The Broca family were sent from Springfield to live on Staten Island on the road leading into Fort Wadsworth, allowing Fred Broca to observe the G.I. Joe operations there. Together with his sister Sean remained unaware that his parents were Cobra agents. They were not told when their father died in a Cobra operation in the Sierras and a man looking just like him was sent to live with them in his place. They kept asking what was going on but were still not told. However one day the new man came home with Stalker and Snake-Eyes. He told them that his former comrades had made him realize how the entire family had been exploited and used by Cobra and that he had had plastic surgery to become a "Fred", identical to their real father. Wade Collins, his real name, had decided to leave Cobra and start a new life free of the organization. The others had almost convinced him to ask the Brocas to come with him but Wade told them they deserved so much better than him. However they all chose to come with him and left to start a new life together. Many years later Sean was approaching his seventeenth birthday and wanted to enlist in the army. Wade was deeply reluctant to sign the papers giving parental permission but proved unable to talk Sean out of it so he asked Sean to write to Snake-Eyes. Snake-Eyes responded with a letter about the realities of soldiering. Wade told Sean that if he still wanted to join the papers would be signed but Sean wanted more time to think about it. Devil's Due Comics continuity It was revealed in the four issue mini-series "Master & Apprentice" that Snake-Eyes left Scarlett on the day of their wedding, grieving the loss of his first student, Ophelia, who was killed by Firefly. During this time, he was finally convinced to train a new student, Kamakura. Kamakura would later join G.I. Joe, and his first appearance in the comics is when he participates in an attack on the Dreadnoks compound deep in the swamp. He is allied with many other Joes and rookie Greenshirts. The Joes suffer the loss of several rookies. Later, Kamakura is the main ninja for the Joe team for some time, as Snake-Eyes is mysteriously AWOL and Storm Shadow is working for Cobra again. When Storm Shadow attempts to penetrate Joe HQ and slay General Hawk, Kamakura, along with other Joes such as Flint, Shipwreck, Clutch, Beachhead and many Greenshirts work together to stop him. Kamakura's multiple confrontations in the face of Storm Shadow's superior skills help drive him off and save Hawk. After G.I. Joe is brought back to active duty as a much leaner team, Kamakura is set to reserve member status. After Snake-Eyes is seemingly killed in a mission to save Scarlett, Kamakura is brought back to active status to serve with Storm-Shadow, giving G.I. Joe 2 Ninjas. He has since remained an active reservist through out the recent missions, but has not gone on any side missions. After the mandatory time off as a result of the Rock being infiltrated by Cobra agents, Kamakura spent time with Snake-Eyes trying in vain to convince Snake-Eyes not to give up on his Ninja training. When the Active members return to duty after this break, Kamakura is again on reserves. Animated continuity Direct-to-video series G.I. Joe: Valor vs. Venom marks Kamakura's first appearance in animated form. Here is seen as an apprentice to Snake-Eyes with Jinx. In Valor vs Venom Kamakura strugles to get his sword out of the holder, but then finally masters it by the end of the movie. And he also gets his butt kicked by Storm Shadow. Toys * Spy Troops (2003) :As part of the Spy Troops line of 2003, Kamakura was sold in a two-pack with Night-Creeper. :Original 2003 file card from YoJoe.com * Valor vs. Venom (2004) :There were two Kamakura action figures released in the Valor vs. Venom series of toys. The first version was packaged in a two-pack with Destro and had an action attack feature where when the figure's legs are squeezed, raises its arm and unsheathes its sword. :Valor vs. Venom file card from YoJoe.com :A second version was released with Storm Shadow in a two-pack. Although it had a similar design to the first two action figures, it actually had an all new body sculpt and did not sport the action attack feature. A slightly different colored version was released in 2005 packaged with the Ninja Lightning vehicle. :2005 Valor vs. Venom file card from YoJoe.com Trivia * First character created by Devil's Due Publishing to be made into a G.I. Joe figure and later brought into the new animated series. * While fans of the G.I. Joe comics are very much aware of Kamakura's true identity of Sean Collins, the filecards and Sigma 6 series deliberately deem his background as classified information. External links * My Useless Knowledge biography Footnotes Category:G.I. Joe Team Category:Arashikage Category:Spy Troops characters Category:Valor vs. Venom characters